with its coverage of what's going on around the world. suzanne malveaux, usually that is her program, but today we have the fantastic fredricka whitfield standing in. see you tomorrow. it starts right now on capitol hill. lawmakers are demanding answers about that attack at the u.s. consulate in libya that left the ambassador and two other americans dead. the attack defendant's exhibit happen the way the obama administration initially said it may have. this violence does not start with a span takenus protest over a now notorious saent islam film. let's get straight to some of the details now. jill dougherty joining us now from the u.s. state department. what are they expected to set straight? >> very interesting reading.

some of these documents. there are statements coming out by the key people who will be testifying today. they -- i have been reading through them, and i think there were a couple of very important moments. that came essentially from the u.n. ambassador, susan rice, and in the testimony by ambassador patrick kennedy, which we expect to hear, he says that any official who was in -- was testifying at that particular time that she did, which was on the 16th five days later, the 16th of september, five days after the attack, would have said the very same thing. it was based on the information that was known at that particular moment. you are already setting up, you know, some would say that the administration lied. in fact, chairman isa said that the administration misled people. now, patrick kennedy from the

state department, he is the under secretary for management, and he is saying no, that is what we knew at that particular point. there are some other interesting moments, fred, as we go through this. we can discuss it if you want, but i think that's one of the key things. >> it is, indeed. so we also just learned information that the white house has sent john brennan to libya. he has been meeting with senior libyan officials there as well. brennan, the assistant to president obama for homeland security and counterterrorism. what is expected to be the mission or what is the hope that would be accomplished? >> well, he is discussing, obviously, the investigation. this congressional investigation, the fbi, and also the state department itself has its own investigation, which is required to do by law. he has been discussing that, and also additional steps that libya could take to help to bring whoever carried out this attack to justice, so it's an important

visit, and it comes at a very important time. >> and what more is believed to be learned about all those parties involved in the attack, whether they would all conceivably be arrested? >> well, you know, i think the main thing now will be that essential question still. how organized and in advance was this plan? i really don't think that that has been completely explained by anyone. was it planned months ago or put on the shelf that could be carried out and this escalated. we do know and this is coming from state department officials and also one of the regional security officer on the ground before this happened. both sgraeg that this was an

unprecedented attack. >> jill dougherty, keep us posted from the state department. >> one member of the female russian punk band pussy riot is now a free woman. she and two others were jailed after the band performed a song critical of russian president vladimir putin inside moscow's main cathedral back in february. two members fled russia to avoid arrest, but the other three were found dlt guilty of hooliganism and given two-year prison terms. today a moscow court decided to let one of them go because she wasn't at that controversial performance. joining us now from moscow,

cnn's phil black. phil, the band member who was ordered released today never made it into the church that day. she was kept out by guards. why was she convicted in the first place along with the other two? >> well, these same facts which ultimately set her free today, the fact she didn't make it into the performance was mentioned during the original trial. during that trial, the judge decided to focus more on her intention to be there, and the planning that she had put towards joining the girls in that performance. also, the three women had teamed up many their strategy in their defense during that trial to really focus on the fact that they believe that this was political, wasn't motivated by religious hatred, as the charges stated, and that it was a legal political protest. in that sense it's really now only in the appeal that that point has been hammered home. >> it seems to be some real similarities between what president vladimir putin says about this case and the subsequent court rulings. a lawyer for one of the women pointing out in the guardian

newspaper that the women were given a lighter sentence after president putin said they shouldn't be judged too harshly, and then just a few days ago mr. putin said the band got what they asked for. then today the court refused to let two of them go. is this a coincidence, or is there a real correlation here? >> hmm, coincidence. these are the events that took place. certainly the russian judicial system isn't known for being the most transparent, the most independent in the world, and there are people in this country that go much further than that. they say that it is heavily corrupt. quite often very politicizeded. in this case the women's own defense team had said that it was political all along, that it was being driven from the very top of the russian political system. they did not expect as a result that any of their members would be freed. today's result under those circumstances has certainly come as a surprise. >> and what's the real feeling about the suppression of free speech here as it relates to this case?

>> well, in this case the real debate is whatsoever punishment -- even those that support the message of the song have felt -- many of them have felt very uncomfortable with the fact that the women went into this cathedral and behaved this way. that's been the talking point over the last six months or so, but there will be many religious people as well, people who closely identify with the russian orthodoxed church who thought that two years was far too severe. >> phil black in moscow, thanks so much. john lennon not only wrote songs, he wrote letters. a lot of them. now they're collected in one book. >> every day the prime minister stands in this parliament to defend this speaker will be another day of shame for this parliament. >> in so doing, i say to the lab leader of the opposition, i will

not be lectured about sexism by this man. i will not. >> a tyrade in australia's parliament going viral. we'll explain why tempers flared, and america needs oil, but drilling for it in the arctic involves environmental risks. capella university understands businesses are trying to come back from rough economic times. employees are being forced to do more with less. and the need for capable leaders is greater than ever. when you see these problems do you take a step back,

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in europe policymakers say drilling for oil in the arctic ocean is okay with them. the european parliament in the economy has voted to reject a moratorium on arctic drilling and here in the u.s. preparations are already underway to look for oil deep beneath the world's smallest ocean off alaska. environmentalists are not happy. >> this is the spot where america's oil needs meets environmental frustration and concern. >> the noble discoverer, one of two rigs operating in the arctic. the rigs aren'ted drilling for oil. only putting in 1,500 feet preparatory wells that they'll revisit and complete next year when the real work begins. >> 2012 has been a good year for us because we drilled. 2013 will be a chance to improve

upon our success this year. success doesn't come easy in a setback after a major piece of clean-up gear and oil containment dome was damaged during testing. to win drilling rights shell has paid for and equipped its own armada of clean-up vessels. environmentalists say the failure is proof the arctic isn't ready for oil exploration. >> you can't have success in a controlled environment, how can you be confident you can control it in a place like the arctic? >> well, first of all, we were working on this. this is why we were testing the containment zone to begin with, and we were looking at it really as a -- it is a serial number one piece of equipment so the work we're doing is really working to work all the bugs out of the problems before we bring it up to the arctic. shell has already spent $5 billion just to get to this point, and they're not entirely sure what they'll find down there. they believe that as much as 20%

of america's future oil needs could be below the sea floor where i'm standing. >> we've got 275 leases. it's about equal to our position in the gulf of mexico. we are optimistic, but everything before a drill bit is really just optimism. we have to drill this. >> next summer, shell says, it's all systems go. all its clean-up vessels ready for arctic deployment. today an expensive dress rehearsal for what shell insists is a major production ahead. miguel marquez joining us now. miguel, you know, shell seems to be forging straight ahead. is think any pushback from the environmentalists, or even alaska residents? >> huge pushback from environmentalists. they fear that the arctic is so fragile that if there is a deep water horizon-like disaster in that area, it will just set -- it will destroy the entire ecosystem there.

natives are concerned for two reasons. one, certainly an environmental problem, but also because they fear if more companies, more countries come into the arctic, it will change their way of life. both sides very concerned about this. shell is forging ahead, and next year they will ramp up their exploration and in 10, 15 years they expect to be pumping billions of barrels of oil out of here. >> miguel marquez, thanks so much. appreciate that. let's talk a little bit more about the environmental impact of the drilling for oil in the arctic. chad myers with us now. >> they have taken a significant more precautions in the gulf of mexico. the gulf of mexico where we get hurricanes, that can knock things off and we can lose oil. they can get hurricanes up there, not per se, but they've had hurricanes with icebergs. think about a 40-mile-per-hour iceberg hitting a rig.

they have a completely different threshold of pain up there. the pumps have to be under ground down below. they've actually called these things basements. they'll shut off -- remember the thing that broke, that didn't really work. >> i was just thinking. i mean, say something goes wrong, how are you going to get to it to fix it? >> all of a sudden if you have a full sheet of ice or a field of ice, how do you clean that up if there's something under the ice? you can't get ships in there. you can't get people in there because it literally is frozen. you can't get there until maybe spring, and by that time there's so much else that goes on. i'm telling you, i have looked at a lot of this project. this project is impressive. the $5 billion. there's the -- up to the north and west. fairbanks. it's a small area. they have a very large lease, though. they have many, many years that they can lease and redrill. right now they're putting a pilot hole down to see if there's anything they need to worry about. they're not drelg for oil yet this year. they're going to get there, but so far -- >> would they consider whether there is a more optimal window of opportunity in the calendar

year in which to do that where the risk is lower? or it's just always tough? >> they would never drill in the winter because of those icebergs coming, knocking things down, but it's that shut off of well that's down below that could get knocked over from an ice flow. you know, you see an ice flow. only 10% of the ice is above the surface. 90% of that ice cube is down below the surface, and that's so much force, so much energy it's a completely new way to do things. the threshold of stability and to make sure that this works they don't want to mess up the first one because they never get to come back, right? >> so much gets damaged along the way potentially. all right. chad myers, appreciate that. thanks so much. all right. a 14-year-old in pakistan is in critical condition after being shot by the taliban. now cnn has a never before seen interview with malala talking about why she risked her life to raise her voice. [ male announcer ] how do you measure happiness?

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welcome back. let's go to capitol hill. live pictures right now of the house oversight and government reform committee rsh right now

democratic representative elijah cummings talking right now. always searching for answer on what the u.s. knew leading up to and following the attack on the u.s. consulate in benghazi, which led to the deaths of four americans, including the u.s. ambassador there. let's listen in to representative cummings. >> are just as concerned as members on the other side of the aisle. we each represent about 700,000 each people too. >> what do we do today? what do we do today? my goal is to try in some way to put this toxic partisanship behind us.

and focus on the security of our personnel. every two years we put our hands up as member of this congress and we swear to protect the people of the united states of america. all of us do that. not just republicans. not just democrats. all of us. those people that we promise to protect are not limited to just the folks located within our shores our bountryes of this nation, but those people that go out and put their lives on the line every day for us and -- >> you're listening to representative cummings there at that house oversight and government reform committee essentially setting the stage there. a number of people are scheduled to testify, including at least two members of the u.s. state department, mr. eric in order strom, who you saw his picture, regional security officer, and ambassador patrick kennedy. we'll continue to monitor the developments in & all that is said during that hearing throughout the afternoon. in the meantime, we have a follow-up on a story we brought

you yesterday about a 14-year-old pakistani girl who was shot by the taliban. they were trying to silence the teenager because she has been speaking out in favor of educating girls. her name is malala, and today doctors removed a bullet from her shoulder. they say she is in stable condition. cnn's re sfwl a saya got an interview with the teen type offist a year ago. listen. >> so why do you risk your life to raise your voice? >> because i thought that my people need me, and i shall raise my voice because if i didn't raise my voice, when will i raise my voice? >> some people might say you're 14. you don't have any rights. you just have to listen to mom and dad. >> i have rights. i have the right of education. i have the right to play. i have the right to sing. i have the right to traumatic. i have the right to go to market. i have the right to speak.

>> what if a girl says i'm afraid, i just want to stay in my room? >> i'll tell her don't don't stay in your room because god will ask you on the day of judgment where were you when your people were asking you, when your school fellows were asking you, and when your school was asking you that i am being blown up. when your people need you, you should come up, you should come and stand up for their rights. >> if you were the president of this country, how would you hand the taliban? >>. >> first of all, i would like to be at so many schools in this country because education is a must thing. if you don't have educated people, the taliban will come to your area, but if you have educated people, they will not come. >> well, educated or not, the taliban come with bombs and guns. how do you handle that? do you still talk to them, or do you call in the army? what do you do? >> first of all, i would like to talk to them. >> what would you say? >> i would say that what are

your demands, what do you want? >> we want you sho to shut down the schools is what they would say? >> i would tell them that don't shut our schools because school -- i will -- >> you're 14. you have no idea what you're talking about. we're going to shut down your school. >> give me a second. first of all, i will -- i will show them koran, what koran says. koran didn't say that girls are not allowed to go to school. >> what a remarkable young lady. reza joining us now. she is -- she just defies any 14-year-old, and she is firm in her stance. give us an idea what her status is right now after that shooting. >> well, her status is improving considerably. earlier today we spoke to a neurosurgeon and he told us that after three hours of operation they did manage to get the

bullet out that was lodged in the neck area, the shoulder area. she has a 90% chance of surviving. loofr people optimistic tonight, hopeful that she's going to recover. >> some reports indicate that doctors have indicated it may be difficult for her to speak even after had he heals. is that something you're learning? >> it's not clear right now. what her doctors and family members have told us is she's unconscious right now. she's on sedative. it's going to take a couple of days to see how she recovers. they say that the surgery was successful. they're optimistic. to make an assessment like that, they need more time to see how she recovers from the surgery. >> how about arrests? are v there been any? >> according to the interior minister today, they have

identified two of the gunmen who shot her, and they insist that they're going to be arrested soon. it's not clear who these men are. it not clear how pakistani authorities found them in such a short amount of time. we should point out that in the past pakistan authorities have made lofty claims like this that haven't materialized, so we'll see what happens with this claim. we'll see if they, indeed, found the culprit. >> apparently the taliban has warned that "if she survives this time, she won't next time." what kind of protections, what kind of security is being extended to

>> these letters give us a look inside one of pop music's most important artists. this is far from your first book about the beatles, but how did you get this? >> i had to find the 300 people who owned these letters, and yoko gave me the -- she didn't give any of the letters because she hasn't got any. it was a piece of detective work finding all the letters. >> somehow you had some clues as to how to find these people who had the letters. was there almost like a roster or some sort of file where you -- how you knew ho to look or where to look? >> no. i did the obvious things. i wrote to all the people that are his relations, his aunt where is and uncles and cousins. i wrote that people that worked with him. i spoke to collectors.

i've got three letters from john. the things about the letters, the copyright rule, is you can't -- i can burn these letters. i can let you read them. i can sell them at sotheby's. i can't publish them. these letters have never been seen before. >> oh, my goodness. >> the thing about them is it shows different aspects of john's character. we know he can be funny and caustic and we know he can be vulgar and obscene, but we also see in these letters him being depressed when he is a young man in hamburg and then later in his life we see him being sentimental and nostalgic, and the other thing about the letters was that he wrote to obvious people like he wrote to me, he wrote to

witty and funny. some in that new york laundry must have packed the letter and it's a joke, and obviously it came on the market. now in washington in a private hotel. >> oh, my goodness. that's incredible. you know, besides the words, you mentioned that sometimes you could tell from his letters that he was very depressed and he was going through various mood swings. besides the word choice, i

notice in a lot of these letters sometimes he would be very artistic, similar to some of the water color that is he would eventually or he and yoko ono would eventually release in art form. wee doodle a lot or draw a lot of pictures of his family. almost kind of like self-impressionistic work as well. what did that say about him? >> that's one of the joys of the letters. they're not just little literary works of art. they're also visual because he was an artist and went to art college, and he is amusing himself, and he is tailoring each letter to the recipient. almost every one of the 300 that i have found, and there must be many i haven't found, he drew things. he drew doodles of him and yoko, with his little eyes, and he did funny drawings. there's one drawing -- there's one letter to a cousin of his called lila, and up at the top of the page you can see some palm trees, and if you look at one of the palm trees, you can

see his little face with his specs peeking out, and there's a pyramid in the corner. it took me a long time to work out that and it's because his cousin was born in egypt where the pyramids are. the people reading this book can work out the words and probably find things i've missed and look at although drawings and doodles because almost every letter is decorated. when we went to an airplane such as american airways and was working on milk paper, he would change all the words, and it changes altitude, and he would change it to attitude. free and easy, whatever, and he would change -- he would muck around with all the -- to amuse himself. >> oh, my goodness. we also know people know that the booelts were often at war with themselves. any insight into those last days based on his writings or his messages to people?

anything? >> we know that the beatles fell out and they were all suing each other. 1960 to 1970, and we know that he and paul fell out, but it was through -- they all ended up suing each other, and that was very sad. there are two or three letters in the book. i don't think john actually sent them. they're letters, which is furious to paul. he is screaming at him and saying awful things. at the back of the fact that he thought everybody hated yoko. he is being defensive and paranoid. one story that paul told me when i was doing the official biography many, many years ago, he and john were having a screaming match, and they're shouting at each other, and they go to the lavtory, and he is standing having a wee, and john looks across to paul, takes his specs off and says to paul, it's only me, paul. with go back in the room and they continue screaming each other. >> it was a love-hate

relationship. >> incredible. incredible collection and insight. thank you so much. the book is the john lennon letters. thank you for sharing with us from london. >> pleasure. thank you. >> and we'll be right back after this. [ woman ] ring. ring. progresso. your soups are so awesomely delicious my husband and i can't stop eating 'em! what's...that... on your head? can curlers! tomato basil, potato with bacon... we've got a lot of empty cans. [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup.

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sparks were flying today on the floor of australia's parliament in sydney. prime minister julia gillard accused opposition coalition leader tony abbott of hypocrisy after he called the speaker of the house a sixist. abbott was referring to crude sex wal text messages she sent to a former female stafford. that was too much for her, and she took out to point out sexist statements made by abbott, including his questioning of a woman's ability to hold powerful positions. >>. >> i will not be lectured about sixism and masogony by this man.

i will not. the public will not be lectured about sexism and masogony by this man. not now. not ever. the leader of the opposition says that people who hold sexist views and who are masogenists are not appropriate for high office. the i hope of the leader for the opposition has a piece much paper. if he wants to know what masogony looks like in modern australia, he doesn't need a motion in the house of representatives. he needs a mirror. that's what he needs. >> every day the prime minister stands in this parliament to defend this speaker will be another day of shame for this parliament and another day of shame for a government which should have already died of shame. >> well, can i indicate to the leader of the opposition government is not dying of shame. my father did not die of shame. what the leader of the

opposition should be ashamed of is his performance in this parliament and the sexism he brings with it. >> abbott was trying to get the house speaker fired for the sex wal text she sent to a former staffer. lourz later the speaker resigned. all right. it is a frightening statistic. 75 million girls are not in school because of poverty. we'll look at how the u.n. is trying to change that. new bayer migraine formula. a short word that's a tall order. up your game. up the ante. and if you stumble, you get back up. up isn't easy, and we ought to know. we're in the business of up. everyday delta flies a quarter of million people while investing billions improving everything from booking to baggage claim. we're raising the bar on flying and tomorrow we will up it yet again.

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turn to senokot-s tablets. senokot-s has a natural vegetable laxative ingredient plus the comfort of a stool softener for gentle, overnight relief of occasional constipation. go to senokot-s.com for savings. >> it's hard to believe right now 75 million girls are absent from classrooms around the world. poverty, forced marriage, and discrimination are some of the reasons behind it, and the united nations is trying to bring about a change. it has declared tomorrow international day of the girl child. joining us from new york to talk about the day of the girl is mary ann pearl, widow of wall street journal reporter daniel

pearl. good to see you. >> good to see you too. >> one-third of girls are not in school. is this day of the girl a first step towards changing that? >> it's an important global recognition. i think it matters a lot. there's still a lot of work to do, but it's being done. >> how will this day resonate? clearly in countries that are not recognizing the potential of a young girl, they wouldn't acknowledge this kind of movement, this kind of marker for a day. >> what's important is the changes -- thanks to an organization that work in the field, the changes are now coming from the inside, so young girls sht being forced into marriage. they're understanding the importance of educating girls, and they are able to transform the communities because of their

knowledge. now, of the cultural circumstances, the context, and how to speak to the elders and that kind of thing. i think what gives a lot of hope is the fact that the change is now coming from the inside. >> and you know most recently this 14-year-old powerhouse of a little girl in pakistan, malala, known as malala, she has been very outspoken against the taliban and very outspoken about the need for young girls to be able to get an education. she takes great risk to get her education on a daily basis, and theb she is shot two times and is fighting for her life. while the prognosis may look good about her healing, you know, a real giant message is being sent by her being a target, whether it be in pakistan or in other countries. do you worry, you know, that that may happen to other little girls that may discourage other little girls who are for a moment feeling encouraged that they too might be able to get an

education? >> well, you know, i just found out about this young girl, and so i'm really sad. the thing is, this is a very important movement, and in every important movement, there will be major obstacles, and this is one. the violence is the weapon of the week, for instance, and, you know, i don't think anyone will stop such an important movement. i think that we have to compose with reality and what these girls are facing. i think it also brings us reality and tells us this is what they're really doing when they're speaking for their education. that's what's going on. >> thank you so much for joining us and best of luck with the day

of the girl. >> let's go to capitol hill now where those hearings are ongoing. the hearings to try to get manager information about what the u.s. knew leading up to and immediately following the attack on the u.s. consulate in benghazi, libya, and you're looking right now at testimony involving eric nordstrom, the regional security officer. our jill dougherty is at the state department. she, too, is also monitoring this hearing. this hearing trying to get to the bottom of the facts as to what led to the attack on this u.s. consulate, which led to the deaths of four americans, including the u.s. ambassador. jill, how much is likely to be revealed here that hasn't already been revealed? >> probably not a whole lot. i think it's more of the interpretation. now, there is, of course, intelligence information that has been shared behind the scenes. that is not being publicized, obviously, but right now i have to say the hearing since it started roughly at noon has been

pretty much sparring between democrats and republicans about whether or not this is a nonpolitical investigation and hearing. there hasn't been a lot of progress on that front, but now we're actually hearing from the witnesses. mr. nordstrom, he is the regional -- was the regional security officer in libya before this happened, and we are expecting at least from the statements we did see -- his comments from before -- released before he spoke saying that it appeared that some of the hardware, the physical structure and support from the state department was pretty much what they had asked for. security wires, walls, et cetera. but before -- we heard from lieutenant colonel andrew wood from the utah national guard. he was on his security team that was working with the state

department. he is satisfying the personnel was not sufficient. obviously -- he is arguing it wasn't enough and that this attack should have been seen in advance and protection and measures taken. >> the overall occurred, our challenges to identify things that could with vaughn wrong and what the highlight will be for the men and women serving at dangerous locations around the world. >> and, fred, you know, as i'm reading through these comments in advance again -- the text in

advance from ambassador patrick kennedy, who is the undersecretary for management, he is admitting saying that right now we don't know everything, so even what we're going to hear at this committee may be incomplete because the entire picture is not known. as we know there are three

a huge african-american case is before the u.s. supreme court today. it involves a white student who claims she was denied admission to university of texas because she is not a minority. that student abigail noel fisher just made statement before b the case right there in washington on the steps of the supreme court. let's bring in joe johns who is there. joe, give us an idea, what did she have to say? >> well, she didn't say much, quite frankly, fredricka. she essentially thanked her lawyers and said that she hopes her case does well here before the supreme court. the justices on the right very

aggressive of the attack -- they heard a case relating to the university of michigan's law school, and questioning whether preferences put through the trap, if you will, on university campuses. intense questioning here. actually, went over the appointed amount of time. i'm sorry. there's a lot of noise and distraction out here. one of the things i think was most interesting was a question that came from justice ruth baiter ginsberg who essentially asked whether it would be appropriate to keep one part of the program at the university of texas in place. that's a part that allows just 10% of high school classes, the top 10% to go to the university

of texas. the other part of their program there also allows for race to be used as one of many factors in determining who gets in. the question i think for many of these justices was whether to throw out that part that involves race and just keep the 10%. very complicated and difficult answer. >> all right. joe johns, thanks so much. the steps of the u.s. supreme court. thank you so much for that. >> we'll have much more in the newsroom after this. but i'm still stubbed up. [ male announcer ] truth is, nyquil doesn't unstuff your nose. what? [ male announcer ] it doesn't have a decongestant. no way. [ male announcer ] sorry. alka-seltzer plus fights your worst cold symptoms plus has a fast-acting decongestant to relieve your stuffy nose. thanks. [ male announcer ] you're welcome. that's the cold truth! [ male announcer ] alka-seltzer plus. ♪ oh what a relief it is! [ male announcer ] try new alka-seltzer plus severe allergy to treat allergy symptoms plus sinus congestion and pain.

[ male announcer ] try new alka-seltzer plus severe allergy i"i'm not in favor of a a$5 trillion tax cut. that's not my plan." mitchell: "the nonpartisan tax policy center concluded that mitt romney's tax plan would cost $4.8 trillion over 10 years." vo: why won't romney level with us about his tax plan, which gives the wealthy huge new tax breaks? because according to experts, he'd have to raise taxes on the middle class - or increase the deficit to pay for it. if we can't trust him here... how could we ever trust him here? why they're always there to talk. i love you, james. don't you love me?

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i'm frederica wit field in for suzanne malveaux. we're focussing on mitt romney's changing stance on abortion. plus, the wives are more popular than their husbands.

could they help sway voters? we're talking about a sfoer out of florida where a parking garage has collapsed trapping several people. rescue crews are on the scene in florida. we don't know exactly how many people are trapped, but one person has been taken to the hospital. a spokeswoman for miami dade fire and rescue says the parking garage was under construction when it collapsed. they're calling it a pancake collapse because the floors fell on one another from top to bottom. we'll, of course, update you as we get more information there in florida. our affiliates there helping us out. now to a huge affirmative action case. it's a student that claims she was denied admission to the university of text technical because she is white. that student abigail noel fisher, that's her right there, sued the school after being rejected in 2008. fisher says u.t.'s admissions

policy unfairly favors minority students. the school says it only considers race in some cases to insure diversity on campus, which it calls a critical component to learning. the u.s. supreme court ruling could have a dramatic impact on admissions policies at schools across the country. 27 days now to the election, and we're talking about one of the most polarizing issues out there. abortion. some democrats are accusing mitt romney of trying to straddle both sides of the debate in an interview with the "des moines register" yesterday romney said he doesn't intend to push for legislation to restrict abortion if he is elected president. here's the quote. "there is no legislation with regards to abortion that i'm familiar with that would become part of my agenda." but then he goes on to say that he is still firmly "pro-life." abortion is, of course, a big talker right now among female voters in particular, and that's a group romney has been having a

hard time attracting. if the goal is to bring in more women into the republican fold, is saying abortion isn't going to be an issue going to be enough? >> maybe a first step, if that's what mitt romney is trying to do here. his campaign is pushing back on that. fred, historically, there's been a gender gap when it comes to presidential elections. the majority of women tend to favor the democratic candidates. jorlt of men tend to favor the republican candidates. it's still around this cycle. take a look at this from gallop. this is the most recent numbers, you could say, on the gender gape. you can see when you break it down among women and men, look at that, among women the president with a five-point advantage, among men, romney with a nine-point advantage. others show the gender gap more pronounced and others show it tight, but that has been a storyline this entire cycle that at least since the start of the general election that mitt

romney has a deficit with women voters. fred. >> and so while romney said he doesn't necessarily have an abortion legislation that he is pushing, he did say that he would reinstate a policy banning non-government organizations from actually receiving federal funding if, indeed, they advocate abortions. >> it's true. you know, during the republican primaries -- a lot of social conservatives have always looked at mitt romney a little skeptically, so during the republican primary he did take a hard stand including abortion, and you mentioned the planned parenthood storyline, which was a big one. as for this new story that just broke with "the des moines register" article and interview from yesterday, the obama campaign is definitely pushing back and trying to say, hey, here is mitt romney flip-flopping again. the obama campaign had a conference call just in the last hour and a half. this is stephanie cutter. she's the deputy campaign manager. take a eleven to what she said.

>> his severely conservative position that is got us through the gop primary are still there. they've been there for six years. now he is trying to cover them up because he knows that they hurt women, seniors, and the middle class, and they hurt his chances for winning the presidency. >> as you can imagine, fred, the rom my campaign is pushing back against all this. here's a statement from andrea stahl, a press secretary for the campaign. he she says "mitt romney is a proudly pro-life, and he will be a pro-life president." they're saying the quote that was pulled out of that interview was taken out of context and that, no, mitt romney remains committed to a pro-life philosophy. fred. >> let's see how different it was from his comments back in march when he talked about planned parenthood in particular. >> here's what i say, which is the federal government should not tax these people to pay for planned parenthood. and the idea the federal government funding planned parenthood, i'll say, no, we're going to stop that.

>> so any real inconsistencies there? >> you know, at that time mitt romney was fighting for the republican nomination. he was going off especially in march, february and then march, against rick santorum. he was his main adversary at that time. rick santorum, the former senator from pennsylvania well known and well respected among social conservatives. mitt romney has -- you know, the campaign, again, saying no. nothing has changed. the obama campaign is trying to, you know, portrait mitt romney as a flip-flopper, and they also go back and foint to, you know, his philosophy or his stance on abortion back when he was governor of massachusetts. that's different from now, fred. >> there's also a chance that the next president will select at least one supreme court justice. right now the court is evenly split on the issue of abortion. is romney downplaying the importance of abortion rights over the next four years? >> good question, because, yes, most likely the next president, be it president obama or mitt romney, as the first-term president will have at least

one, maybe two supreme court picks to make. it is interesting here because, you know, besides what the campaigns are saying, you're seeing a lot of independent groups like planned parenthood on one side and seeing social conservatives on the other side playing this issue up. how much do social issues matter? compared to the economy, not so much, but in a very close election, in a very close election, which it seems to be shaping up that way, these issues do matter, and that's why there's such emphasis on that -- this issue. that's why it is such an important topic. fred. >> all right. thank you so much. paul steinhauser, appreciate that. >> just one day to go before paul ryan and vice president joe biden meet in their first and only debate. president obama's lackluster performance last week may have raised the stakes now. the debate takes place tomorrow night in danville, kentucky. ryan arrives in kentucky later on today. the vice president is prepping at his home in delaware. once again, mitt romney is trying to lower expectations. here's what he told wolf blitzer.

>> are you confident, governor, that paul ryan will take on joe biden thursday night the way you took on the president? >> you know what, i don't know how paul will deal with in debate. obviously the vice president has done, i don't know, 15 or 20 debates during his lifetime. experienced debater. this is -- i think paul's first debate. i may be wrong. he may have done something in high school. i don't know. it will be a new experience for paul, but i'm sure he will do fine. >> dana baish now joining us live. we know paul ryan isn't the inexperienced debater romney makes him out to be. you know, why is the campaign, you know, kind of playing this game again? i mean, this is somebody who spent seven terms on congress. he knows what it is to speak in front of people and debate an issue. >> this is all about psychological warfare at this point. each camp is trying to psych out the other in terms of what the experience is, where they're going to head, what they're not

going to say, what they're going to say, but, you know, mitt romney is almost right when he said that maybe paul debated in high school because he started his political career so young. he was 27, maybe 28 at the time wrish think we have some video. he did do a debate during his first congressional campaign back in 1998 when he beat the democrat lidia spotswood. there you see. it's a little grainy, old, but there you see a very young paul ryan having a debate, but to be fair, debating somebody in a congressional district in wisconsin is not even close to the same as debating on the vice presidential level in front of tens of millions. >> so you have been covering the ryan debate prep. is there anything that we can gleen from his strategy? what he has been focussing on in particular? >> you know, he has been working extremely hard behind the scenes. pretty much since he was picked to learn mitt romney's record, to bone up on it. he has been doing some -- what

they all traditionally do now, some mock debates. ted olson, who was the solicitor general during the bush -- last bush administration. he is a very well known litigator. tough as nails lit gaetor. he has been playing joe biden in these mock debates, and unlike the last debate, fred, they're going to be sitting at a table kind of sunday morning style, so they've been sitting around tables and hotel rooms, wherever they can, trying to game out this debate, and one other interesting tidbit, ted olson was picked not just because of his abilities when it comes to debating and litigating, but also because of the generational difference. he is about joe biden's age. paul ryan is a generation plus younger than joe biden, so that's another thing that is going to be an interesting dynamic to watch. >> all right. dana bash, thanks for that. sdoo thank you. you'll hear a firsthand account of what it's like to square off against paul ryan in a debate. lidia spotswood lost to ryan when he first ran for congress in 1998, and says that you shouldn't underestimate him. she'll be joining for paul later

on today live in the 3:00 p.m. eastern hour. the obama campaign is out with an ad that brings up mitt romney's 47% comment again. romney has tried to put the issue to rest once and for all. he initially stood by the hidden camera remark that 47% of americans are victims and dependent on government, but last week he said it was wrong. wolf blitzer asked romney about his reversal. >> that that 47% comment that you made that's caused you a lot of grief, as you know, there's been a change if your position over these past few weeks. it went from you were initially saying once that tape came out that you -- that you weren't exactly elegantly stating your position. later and more recently you said you were completely wrong. i'm curious, governor, how did that evolution in your thinking go on from the initial reaction once that tape came out to what you said the other day, that you were completely wrong? >> well, what i'm saying is it is words that came out were not

what i meant. what i mean is if i'm president, i'll be president of 100% of the people. my whole campaign is about helping the middle class have rising incomes and more jobs and helping get people out of poverty into the middle class. that's what this whole campaign is about. the wealthy are doing fine right now, and they'll do fine regardless of who is elected president. it's the middle class that's having a hard time under president obama, and my campaign is about 100% of it is american people, and so that describes why -- what was stated in the tape was not referring to what kind of president i would be or who i would be fighting for. instead it was talking about politics, and it just didn't come out the way i meant it. >> if you had a do-over, governor, and you mentioned 47%, what would you -- what should you have said about that 47%? >> well, wolf, as you know, i was talking about how do you get to 50.1% of the vote. i would like to get 100% of the

vote, but i figure that's not going to happen, so i was trying to tell contributeors how i get to 50.1%. >> political observers were surprised when president obama didn't bring up the issue during last week's debate. all right. stay with cnn for debate night in america. vice president biden and congressman paul ryan get their turn to tackle the issues facing the country. watch the vice presidential debate tomorrow night. our coverage begins at 7:00 eastern on cnn and cnn.com as well. here's what we're working on for this hour. in order to win the white house, mitt romney will have to do well in ohio. working moms are at the center of it all. and the pharmacy at the center of the deadly fungal meningitis outbreak. well, representatives wouldn't talk to cnn's dr. sanjay gupta. they wouldn't even let him inside stwloosh they wouldn't let us in the building, but behind the building this is what it looks like. over there that's the necc, the compounding facility. back here it's a recycling

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the latest poeltz show the race is tightening with president obama hold aing four-point lead. but mitt romney needs -- the group? working moms. the story from john king. if there is one big warning sign here, it is from white women. >> it is lights still on past midnight. another 20-hour day for jessica lundgren. >> aem a single mom to a 5-year-old little girl who is fantastic. i work full-time, and go to school full-time, so many day usuallily starts around 4:40 in the morning and ends at 1:00 a.m. you do what you have to do in this economy. sdoo her vote, she says, is for jillian's future. she was leaning mitt romney until his own words pushed her back to undecided. sfoo speaking about, you know, the 47% and i can't really worry about tlem. how can you put your faith and

trust in a candidate that doesn't care about everybody? still a narrow barack obama line. white women are the battleground within the battleground. our new cnn poll shows 52% support the president now. that's up from the 47% he received here in 2008. >> they're all worried about putting food on the table, raising kids who are happy and healthy, who are going to have a good future, graduate into a economy where they can find a job. >> democratic pollster marjorie o'mearo has been constitutying so-called "wal-mart moms" for several years. >> we've proven them to be swing voters. in 2008 they voted for obama. in early 2010 they were a little bit more divided. by november 2010 they were decidedly republican. >> i was wondering if mitt romney and paul ryan and josh mandelle can count on your vote in this election? >> like sarah, a 2008 obama

voter who is now a romney ohio volunteer. >> he let me down. i was very, very hopeful that he was going to be the guy to turn everything around in america, make everything better, and he just -- it's -- his words were empty. >> romney might have only himself to blame if more white middle class moms side with obama this cycle. >> let's pray. >> lord jesus, thank you for this food. >> sharon wiseman is a conservative christian, a 2008 john mccain voter who recently went from undecided to lean obama, offended, she says, by romney's 47% remark. >> i think he i heard it on an obama ad, and then i googled it. i feel like he is out of touch with what everybody is going through. i mean, ohio is one of the hardest places hit. >> it hit home because the wiseman family got some government help while husband ray was unemployed for a bit. >> my reaction to what he said is that's me. he is talking about me. >> three teenagers and a husband who just found work two hours away shaped sharon's politics. while she promises to listen,

the hour is getting late. governor romney running out of time to prove he understands her struggles. >> governor romney hopes that 47% remark fades as the debates continue and the election nears. some local republicans aren't so sure and are arguing, among other things, for an ann romney tv ad aimed directly at those women with doubts. and as for paul ryan, he has said time and time again that he is a proud deer hunter. hear why hunters say they're excited at the pros peck of support from the bhous. white house. [ laughing ] [ laughing ] ♪

paul ryan says he is a deer hunter and proud of it. he is gaining support from hunters in large part because of this comment. >> hey, i'm a catholic deer hunter. i am happy to be clinging to my guns and my religion. >> hunters haven't seen someone passionate about hunting in the white house since dick cheney. cnn editor kat kinsman joining me right now. hunting isn't just a hobby for ryan. spent four years as co-chairman in the congressional sportsman's caucus. why are hunters so excited about

ryan, and what are they hoping to get from him? >> well, i think a lot of after i had hunters would be more than happy if we all front of about dick cheney's hunting legacy. with paul ryan you get somebody whose secret service name is bow hunter, so he puts his money where his mouth is. we ran a story earlier this week about how he makes sauce amming out of his meat that he hunts. what people are really hoping is to have somebody in in a position who can affect change who understands it culturally that this is not just for sport. he hunts for sustena 234 ce and understands the land and weapon rights in a particular way that is very close to their -- to how they were raised. >> if particular he is a real proponent of hunting on public lands. what does that mean for i guess his constituents? what are they hearing when they hear him articulate that?

>> well, this is true. he has used a little bit of charged lincoln ms regard talking about starry-eyed activists who want to keep hunters off of public lands and his notion is that if you are a hunter, you are so tied to the land, to respect and stewardship of the land because you want to insure that you have enough to eat in future seasons, so what he is saying that the tax players are, you know -- they're paying for the land. they might as well reap the benefits from it, and also act as its protector and it's really best left in the hands of people who have that close tie to nature. >> i understand there was quite the buzz when he went shopping with his 10-year-old daughter for hunting gear. it was the first time that he was allowing her to hunt. what is being said in the blogosphere? >> people are having very strong reactions to it. if you don't come from a hunting cup k you will tour, you're going to think there's a little girl out there killing animals, and i understand that, but i can also tell you that all of the friends of mine who are hunters

who grew up hunt and who are teaching their own children to hunt are, again, so very tied to the land. they instill gun safety into their children from the second they're even allowed look at a rifle. these children are tremendous respect for where their food comes from. they are not out there -- packat response on both sides. >> kat kinsman, thank you for joining us from new york. >> thanks for having me. >> she's all over the airwaves, but will it help her husband get into the white house? we'll take a look at ann romney's latest push for the campaign. sfleerchlgts don't forget, you can watch cnn live on your computer, while you're at work. head to cnn.com/tv. i'm with sandra who just got these great glasses.

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guest host. ann romney. here's a snippet from her first day on the job. >> what is it about horse therapy or equine therapy? >> you know, it's so extraordinary what the horses do for us. for me it's, again, balance. it's love. it's joy. what they're doing for so many other people right now. we have wounded vets coming home, and they're turning to horses for therapy. they're -- we have kids -- >> at the same time that the wife of white house hopeful mitt romney is taking the morning airwaves by storm, she's also surging in popularity. a new abc news-washington post poll shows she's more popular than her husband right now. >> i want to bring in lynn sweet, washington bureau chief for the "chicago sun-times". she's joining us via skype right now. the candidate's wives have long been considered a secret weapon in the fight for female voters in particular. how effective is ann romney as a campaign surrogate right now? >> i think she's a terrific surrogate for mitt romney because she's able to tell a

story that only she can tell, which is what is he like? what's the man behind the candidate? what does he like to do, and also everybody is always interested in the county's family and kids, and that's the potential for her herself. there's no down side to having a campaign as much as she's up to. >> of course, everyone knows there's a long history of, you know, it is man whose vying for presidency has the ear, you know,of his wife and vice versa, whether it's a.m. ann romney in this case, michelle obama and president obama and nancy reagan, ronald reagan. at the same time, you know, are we finding that ann romney is taking on kind of a greater role in helping to shape the image of her husband? apparently and reportedly she and one of their sons actually had like a real heart to heart with mitt romney and said there's got to be more of you that comes out. you've got to make this more

personal. >> i know there was a story there, you but that is one of the things that -- a role that a campaign spouse plays is the sense to be the truth teller. a spouse can't get fired. they're not going anywhere. i think that's what they and sons and daughters do in campaigns and that's why they become very available. they are there because people can go to them. in terms of mrs. romney's role, she's been around. she's been the first lady of massachusetts. she -- you know, she has been involved in the campaign since day one. she probably has good insights on how to her husband a more notable to the american people. >> during the convention, we saw that she was trying to send that message, a very strong message, particularly to female voters out there. take a listen as to what took place on that convention. oh, sorry. we don't have that pulled. sorry about that.

you remember. you know, she was directly speaking to women. >> i will tell you, what was striking about that speech was for the first time you heard about the love story. she talked about her conversion to the mormon faith. people, i think -- people's -- she shared it with us. i thought she did a terrific job in the role of lead-off speaker for the convention. >> then there's michelle obama. she's become very comfortable in tegts with lots of people. small, you know, or giant audiences. she, too, has been considered kind of a secret weapon of president obama. do you think she will be used in a more aggressive, assertive way with now just 27 days before election day? we lost our connection with lynn sweet there. thank you for being with us as long as that signal was in place. meantime, joe biden, paul ryan

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taking place right now on capitol hill, the oversight and deposit reform committee exploring what kind of security measures were taken leading up to the attack in benghazi, libya, and the information that followed. let's listen in to the testimony right now. >> extremist elements, opportunistic elements taking advantage essentially of that protest. now, the office of the director of national intelligence issued

a statement that indicated that it had been the source of the ambassador's statement, and i would like to read what the national intelligence director said. in the immediate aftermath there was information that led us to assess that the attacks happened spontaneously earlier that day. we provided that initial assessment to executive branch officials and members of congress who used that information to discuss the attack publically and to provide updates as they became available. throughout our investigation we continued to emphasize that information gathered was preliminary and evolving. i know, by the way, that mr. nordstrom, you say in your testimony -- i'm looking at page two.

i metro detroit say suggesting that perhaps we should be about rethinking how to protect our outposts as it's clear we're not going to do it with lots of funds, but what i read as the statement, ambassador kennedy, could i ask you from the -- could i ask you if you have any reason to doubt that ambassador rice relied on that information from the national intelligence director? >> when i came up to give a briefing earlier that week followed, you think, a day or two later by ambassador rice, both of us were relying on the same information. i said in my oral statement that if i or any other senior

administration official, career or noncareer, would have been on that television show other than susan rice, we would have said the same thing because we were drawing on the intelligence information that was then available to us. this has been, as you all know, a very much evolving situation. what we knew that first week and that first weekend has evolved over time so we know much more now than we knew then. >> the national director issued a statement on the 28th, and he said as we learned more about the attack, we revised our national assessment to have information indicating it was a deliberate and organized terrorist attack organized by extremists, so we see the evolving nature of it. i have to ask you about the -- the diplomats who were stationed in cairo who were accused by

governor mitt romney of sympathizing with the attackers i would like to know how these diplomats, these personnel in cairo reacted to that criticism? >> i'm afraid, ms. norton, i don't know. i have not had any conversations with the public affairs sector and the embassy in cairo, but i can assure you from just my general knowledge of that there is not a officer who at all sympathizes or agrees with terrorists. >> thank you. >> we now go to the gentleman from ohio, mr. jordan. could you kweeld necessity ten seconds for a quick question? let's understand what you are saying here today is that one piece of intel, one piece of infell got you guys, yourself and secretary rice or ambassador

rice, to make a wrong statement five or six days later and still be making it because sunday is a long time after tuesday. you are saying you got it wrong and you didn't know any better. is that right? >> the information that was availab available. >> ambassador, you're a great witness historically. i asked you did you have any contrary knowledge over those five days? that's all -- >> no, sir. >> okay. you didn't know any better for the next five days is your testimony. thank you, mr. jordan. >> mr. chairman, may i ask the consent that we give equal time to mr. cummings to respond and then give mr. jordan his full five minutes? >> mr. chairman, on that request -- >> to be honest -- mr. jordan. >> point of order. >> are you requesting time? >> point of order. >> i guess unanimous consent that the ranking member have 15 seconds without objection to order. >> objection. >> mr. and mrs. chairman, with all due respect, you just went

over -- >> you don't have to apologize to me. >> with all due respect you just allowed mr. burton to go over by two minutes, and you are giving mr. cummings 15 seconds. you know what i mean? there's a little bit -- i'm sure you -- >> i understand. we have gone over both on witnesses and that and i will -- i'm going to pull it back into five minutes very solidly. >> okay, but just be fair. >> before we get down to your part, i promise. >> thank you, sir. >> thank you. >> without objection, the ranking member is given equal time to ask a question. i just want to go back to you, ambassador. i think mr. norton and the question asked a very critical question. the chairman talked about the five days. can you give us -- can you try to explain that to us that, you know, during that period of five days or whatever it was not being able to -- not having the information contrary to what mr. rice may have said, i understand it was based on intelligence, but can you explain how that could happen to

the public? in other words, while you all are still gathering information, was the state department in the process of trying to get it right? i mean, what was going on there, do you know? >> mr. cummings, we were gathering information. we were closely coordinating with our colleagues in the intelligence community. we wanted to know what was happening more than anyone else because we also had dozens of other embassies that we are concerned about, including attacks on three or four other embassies, so we were looking for every piece of information that we could get from no matter what rationale and reasonable source to feed into our consideration of what steps we should take to protect u.s. diplomatic -- >> just one last question, chairman. is it unusual for you all to rely on the intlgs xunt for that information? >> we have a great -- we heavily depend upon the information they

provide us just as they heavily dpepd upon information we provide them. >> thank you, mr. chairman. >> thank you. now the gentleman from ohio has exactly five minutes. >> thank you. i thank the chairman. lieutenant colonel wood, how many months were you in libya? >> i was in libya approximately six months. >> mr. nordstrom, how many months were you in libya? >> approximately ten. >> ms. lam, how many times have you visited libya -- how many times have you visited linea period? >> i have not. >> none over the last 14, 15 modz? >> no. >> none since the security instances in libya did you visit? >> no, sir. >> mr. kennedy, how many times have you been to libya? >> none. >> let me go to this process. we had numbers earlier from mr. nordstrom. you talked about 3/5 in liva and then you talked about you wanted 12 plus a back-up of six, and i want to know about this process, and i'll go to mr. kennedy first. mr. kennedy, you would say that the department of state regularly assesses risk and

allocation which considers judgment of professionals in washington and on the ground using the best information available. that process -- i want to know how the decision was made. are you involved in that process, ambassador kennedy? >> in most normal occasions i am not involved. there's an ongoing dialogue. >> where does that process employ to? are people in the white house. is secretary clinton directly involved in that process? >> the process -- if there are disagreements between the post in the field and the diplomatic -- >> would you classify what took place here as a disagreement based on what mr. nordstrom and mr. wood has testified to? >> no, sir. >> this didn't reach the disagreement level? >> i describe it as a dialogue between the post and diplomatic security -- >> this didn't reach a level where you needed weigh in or someone higher needed weigh in? >> no, sir, it did not. >> the national security council to weigh in there? >> no, sir, it did not. >> okay. let me turn to you then, mr. nordstrom. i want to known the e-mail that congressman referenced earlier, the interview you had with congressman and chairman isa

back on october 1st, you state this is not an environment where posts should be directed to normalize operations and reduce security resources in accordance with artificial timelines. yet, today in your testimony it was a little different tenor, as i think the ranking member brought out. you said one point it should not be to operate from a bunker. i want to ask you these questions. first of all, since that interview with chairman isa and chairman chafitz, staff has indicated they tried to contact you six different times via telephone. you have not responded. is there a reason you did not respond to those telephone calls many. >> that's correct. >> no, it's correct you didn't respond. is there a reason? >> i had been advised by the department of state that all -- >> who specifically advised you to do that? >> our legislative affairs office. >> and did they tell you where that came from? did ms. lamb specifically advise you not to talk? >> no, she did not stwlsh. >> did ambassador kennedy tell you to do in a? >> no. >> did twuf state tell you not to do that?

>> who told you not to talk to our staff after you gave this interview where you gave us this information. >> i was advised by the as yabt secretary boswell and his office, his staff that all requests for information and documents would need to be -- would need to be vetted or routed through that office. >> did those same individuals help you prepare for today's testimony. >> in the sense of providing general guideline on how -- >> did they tell you they wanted to look it over before you came to the committee and gave it today? >> of course. >> did they write it for you blsh 1234. >> no, they did not. >> ms. lamb, i want to go back to -- i want to go back to this decision making process. so is it customary to not listen as -- well, i would characterize it -- listen as intently as i think you should have to the guys in the field and what they wanted to have happen when they requested the 12 plus the six backup? >> yes, sir.

i listened intently to those conversations. >> okay. mr. wood, let me get -- bring you into the conversation here. i want your comments on that specifically the number you wanted to add in libya plus the additional six. >> we agreed to the numbers between eric and i and put forth those numbers. we felt great frustration in the fact that those demands were ignored or in some cases just never met. >> so the process i was earlier referencing when talking -- asking mr. -- ambassador kennedy, tell me who you felt was involved in that process? who were the individuals in washington, you were the folks on the ground at post, who were the folks at washington in that process? >> i heard eric nordstrom refer to ms. lamb as far as the deciding authority on providing those additional resources. >> experienced professionals on the ground in washington. who are the other experienced professionals in washington? >> i wouldn't know the answer to that. >> who else? all we know we know the secretary of state wasn't. we know the white house wasn't.

we know ambassador kennedy wasn't. somebody had to decide. someone in washington was telling you guys you couldn't get what you wanted. so was it just ms. lamb, or were there other people involved in this process? >> again, i can't speculate in term of who was the person i dealt with was our regional director jim and then ms. lamb. >> okay. same concerns. dcm also met in february and raised the same concerns in person and it is my understanding that ambassador kretz made phone calls. >> anyone that needs to answer that question, but the gentleman's time has expired. miss lamb? on behalf of miss lamb, ambassador kennedy. >> i want to -- >> briefly, please. >> absolutely, mr. chairman. i was asked on a different question, i was asked whether i was going to request a third extension of the sst. i consulted with my colleagues,

and because our colleagues had put together -- >> that's not what you said earlier. you said you weren't involved and now you're telling me you are. which is it? >> you asked a specific question -- >> this question will be for the next round for both of you. with that, we recognize the gentleman from ohio, also, mr. kucinich. >> thank you very much, mr. chairman. mr. kennedy has testified today u.s. interests and values are at stake in libya and that the u.s. is better off because we went to benghazi. really? you think that after ten years in iraq and 11 years in afghanistan that our country, the u.s. would have learned the consequences and limits of interventi intervention. >> on capitol hill, you're listening to the house oversight and government reform committee and heard earlier representative jim jordan trying to get to the bottom of who would either approve or deny any kind of request for additional security at the u.s. consulate there in benghazi. the questions going back and forth now over what was known

leading up to the attack, at the u.s. consulate, which led to the deaths of four people, including the u.s. ambassador and what was the story following. we're going to continue to watch the hearing here, take a short break for now. we'll be right back. but i want to eat meat! [ male announcer ] iams knows dogs love meat. ...but most dry foods add plant protein, like gluten iams never adds gluten. iams adds 50% more animal protein, [ dog 2 ] look at me! i'm a lean, mean flying machine [ dog 1 ] i am too! woo hoo! [ male announcer ] iams. with 50% more animal protein. [ dog 2 ] i'm an iams dog for life. not a rabbit. woof! [ "the odd couple" theme playing ]

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giving the volt high praise. volt received the j.d. power and associates appeal award two years in a row. ♪ all right, welcome back. we're keeping a close ee on a horrible accident that took place in south florida in doral, florida, in particular. it looks like a parking garage that was under construction has pancaked. we understand according to authorities one person has died, two people are still trapped. we understand that four people were taken to a local hospital and three others have been treated. it is unclear exactly what took place here. all we can tell you is that this was a construction site. we do understand according to authorities all those involved, injured, are construction workers who were on the site. we'll continue to keep a close watch and give you details as we learn them. meantime, 12 people are dead and another 125 sick in a

growing meningitis outbreak affecting much of the country. at the center of it all, contaminated steroid injections that 13,000 people may have received. the fda does not have the authority to regulate the authorities like the one linked to this contamination. cnn chief medical correspondent dr. sanjay gupta went to massachusetts for answers. and what he found is a bit disturbing. >> what it all boils down to is this, how could it have all happened in the first place? i find it remarkably difficult to get any information whatsoever. we drove about 40 miles outside of boston to massachusetts to the home of the owner and operator of the compounding facility. both he and his wife work there in the department of pharmacy. we wanted to ask them simple questions but neither one of them would come to the door. so we drove 25 miles to framingham, massachusetts, this is the neec, the compounding facility at the heart of the

outbreak. we just wanted some answers. >> we're with cnn, we're trying to get a hold of somebody to talk to you about what has been going on here. >> unfortunately, i have to ask you guys to leave the property. >> they are telling us to leave the parking lot, not even be here. we know people from the fda are inside. a lot of cars in the parking lot. people are working here in some capacity, but this is another example of just how ridiculous it has been to try and get any information whatsoever. >> they wouldn't let us in the building, but behind the building, this is what it looks like. over there, that's the neec, the compounding facility. back here, it is a recycling facility, essentially looks like a dump. walking around here, people told us that there has been this relationship between the recycling facility and neec for some time, doing a little bit of the digging, we realized that they're in fact owned by the same people. >> sanjay gupta joining us now from our boston bureau. the facility that produces mass quantities of drugs for humans

also shares the property with a garbage dump? is that what we're seeing in the back? >> yeah. this is a -- they call it a recycling facility and the center is a compounding center. they don't make the drugs per se, but to your point, they mix medications together and for human use. it was stunning to us as well that this garbage dump would be so close to the building. this particular facility is not accredited, the neec. it doesn't have to be accredited under the state of massachusetts law. there are many facilities that are not accredited. but one of the things they do as part of the accreditation process is look at the facilities, look at the machinery and things like this, fredricka. >> what is the difference between the compounding pharmacy and a regular pharmacy that people, you know, know to be in their neighborhood, on the corner, et cetera? >> right. well, you know, for a long time, the whole notion of compounding

medications, you know, that was something that was done by local pharmacies, particular medication, you needed in smaller doses or needed it mixed with another medication. sometimes kids would get it flavored so it wouldn't taste as bad. as you sort of allude to, fredricka, that was don't locally. the compounding centers have gotten larger and larger over time and now you have these sorts of centers which made 17,000 -- more than 17,000 doses of this particular steroid mixture. so what it started off with many years ago, what it turned into, fredricka, are two very different things. >> so more than 13,000 people have received injections from this particular facility. what should they do now if they know indeed that their supply came from that place? >> yeah, well, finding out, first of all, is the first step as you point out. there is good ways to do that. contact the clinic or the doctor. i was just on cdc.gov and there is a good way,